2,214 Alberta Men Respond to a Survey on Personal Well-Being and Healthy Relationships

The Alberta Men’s Survey provides key insights on relationships and necessary supports and services for men

The Alberta Men’s Survey (AMS) was created by 70 men and women committed to enhancing men’s roles in violence prevention. The preliminary results from the AMS will be shared in Calgary on November 23, 2015, at 11AM in the Faculty of Social Work, at the University of Calgary. A lunch and dialogue will follow. Over 75 community, agency and governmental representatives are planning to attend. A second event to share the research findings will take place in Edmonton on November 25th from 6 to 9PM at Latitude 53 (10242 106 St. NW).

The AMS was distributed from July through October 2015 using Survey Monkey and through trained research assistants. A tremendous strength of the project was a culturally-diverse team of community-based research assistants. Supported by a leadership group of 18 organizations and numerous volunteers, the survey reached men in over 35 Alberta localities. Edmonton, Calgary and Sherwood Park were the top three cities that drew respondents.

Building men’s capacities to participate in gender-based violence prevention work is long overdue. Research shows that violence against women (VAW) and girls is a global phenomenon. In Canada, men commit the majority of sexual assaults, physical assaults with a weapon and homicides. Men and boys are also negatively impacted by male violence and rigid gender/sexuality stereotypes and expectations. Men’s perceptions and attitudes towards non-violent relationships and lifestyles are critical to inform supports, services and programs to prevent gender-based violence. While there is recognition of the important role of men in violence reduction initiatives, very little data exists in terms of what men need in order to build and sustain healthy relationships in Alberta. This lack of data contributes to the barriers that men face in accessing existing programming related to healthy relationships, as well as gaps in developing new services to address men’s needs.

It is our hope that the learning from the AMS will support the efforts of community members, governments and the numerous organizations that are working on the creation, implementation, and evaluation of preventative services that focus on men and boys. Supported through funding provided by United Way of Calgary and Area, the Alberta Human Rights, Education, and Multiculturalism Fund and The Calgary Foundation to the Ethno-Cultural Council of Calgary, the Alberta Men’s survey is the first of its kind in Alberta in its focus, reach and level of collaboration.